Ornamental wrinkle films



May 6, 1952 H. A. TOULMIN, JR

ORNAMENTAL WRINKLE FILMS Original Filed April 7, 1947 5 Sheets-Sheet lINVENTOR HBQRRY A. TOULMIN JR.

ATTORNEYS May 6, 1952 H. A. TO-ULMIN, JR

ORNAMENTAL WRINKLE FILMS 5 Sheets-Sheet 2 Original Filed April 7, 1947FIG 2 m RM m L W WT m H 3 G F 0 ATTORNEYS y 6, 1952 H. A. TOULMIN, JR ,74

ORNAMENTAL WRINKLE FILMS Original Filed April 7, 1947 5 Sheets-Sheet 3FIGII 64 FIG I8 87 86 FIG I3 1269 Y 5 '7" lNVENTOR glfRRY A. TOULMIN JR.

ATTORNEYS May 6, 1952 H. A. TOULMIN, JR

ORNAMENTAL WRINKLE FILMS 5 Sheets-Sheet 4 Original Filed April 7, 1947ATTORNEYS I II I III [IF i 5 .555. "a I man-i girl:

May 6, 1952 H. A. TOULMIN, JR

ORNAMENTAL WRINKLE FILMS 5 Sheets-Sheet 5- Original Filed April 7, 1947FIG 7 2 mm A. TOULMIN JR. 'J mdlnnm 5 ATTORNEYS Fatented May 6, 1952ORNAMENTAL WRINKLE FILMS Harry A. Toulmin, Jr., Dayton,

Ohio, assignor to New Wrinkle, Inc., Dayton, Ohio, a corporation ofDelaware Original application April 7, 1947,

Serial N 0.

739,970. Divided and this application November 17, 1949, Serial No.127,972

4 Claims. 1

This invention deals with a process and apparatus for making wrinkledfilms having a predetermined pattern'and with the products obtainedtherewith.

This application is a division of my co-pending application Serial No.739,970, filed April 7, 1947, now Patent No. 2,511,024. I

It is an object of this invention to provide films having an ornamentalpattern of a very pleasing appearance, the design of which may be easilycontrolled or modified.

It is another object of this invention to provide wrinkle-texturedfilms, the pattern of which may be modified in numerous ways while usingthe same materials and the same devices.

It is still another object of this invention to provide wrinkle-texturedfilms which have a predetermined pattern in a very simple andinexpensive manner.

It is still another object of this invention to provide wrinkle-texturedfilms with a predetermined pattern from materials which have been heldnon-wrinkling heretofore.

These and other objects are accomplished broadly by providing a supportwith a design, superimposing thereover a layer of a solution ofnon-wrinkling thermoplastic resin, causin predetermined areas of thesurface of said layer to wrinkle by differential heating of said layeruntil skin formation has set in in the areas to be wrinkled and thenapplying water to the surface whereby the skinned areas obtain awrinkled texture.

As the support for the resin film, various materials are usable. Thus,metal, e. g. copper, stainless steel, or paper, glass, wood and manyothers have been found satisfactory. While the support may be used inthe form of a plain sheet, it is particularly advantageous to employ acontinuous belt for the purpose of my invention.

The design may be applied to the support by various methods; thus, itmay be applied by etching, carving, embossing, or engraving. Forinstance, an etched metal belt as it is being used for lithographicprinting was found advantageous. The pattern desired may also be printedonto the belt or support with an ink that is compatible with thethermoplastic resin. Moreover, a combination of embossing or engravingwith printing may be used. In this case the ink pattern may eithercoincide with regard to the relief pattern, or else it may be arrangedat difierent areas. In the first case, the pattern obtained by onemethod is emphasized by that obtained by the other method, whereas inthe latter case an additional effect re- 2 suits. For instance, onemethod may provide for instance advertising matter, while the othermethod may supply a design pattern for purely ornamental character.

All thermoplastic resins are usable for this invention. Among the manyresins which have been found satisfactory are vinyl acetate copolymers,vinyl chloride copolymers or mixtures of these two, chlorinated rubbers,styrene polymers and copolymers, cellulose acetate, cellulose acetatebutyrate, cellulose acetate propionate, methyl cellulose, vinylbutyrate, polyethylene, butadiene copolymers such as butadieneacrylonitrile and butadiene styrene copolymers, methyl methacrylate,vinylidene copolymers, vinyl alcohol polymers, vinyl chloride-vinylidenechloride copolymers and mixtures of these substances.

In the following example a formula is given which proved particularlysatisfactory:

Example Grams Vinyl acetate-vinyl chloride copolymer (ratio 5 parts byweight: parts by The mixture was preferably heated before application,because the solution is gelled at room temperature.

As the solvents for the resin those are preferred which have a highevaporation rate; methyl ethyl ketone, acetone, butyl acetate,cyclohexanone, xylol, toluol, toluol with nitroparafiin, amyl acetateare a few examples for those solvents that were used with satisfaction.A concentration of from 10 to 65 parts by weight of resins in parts byweight of the solution is operative, the concentration and viscositybest suitable being dependent upon the method by which the film is to beapplied to the support. For spraying, 9, viscosity of approximately 36.2centipoises at 25 C. was found to be proper.

The film may be applied to the support by spraying, knifing, rolling orother methods known to those skilled in the art. A less viscous solutionis required if spraying is chosen than if other methods of applicationare used.

Heating of the film for the purpose of skin formation is preferablycarried out by means of infrared rays, the time of exposure beinggreatly dependent on the composition used, in particular on the boilingpoint and the evaporation rate of which case skin formation sets in atthose areas of the film which are underneath said cut-outs, whereas theareas protected by the insulating material of the template will still betoo cold as to develop a skin. On the other hand, a template may also beused which consists Of a material of very good heat conductivity, forinstance, which is made of a particularly well conducting metal; in thiscase a skin will develop first in those areas which are locatedunderneath the metal parts of the template, whereas the sectionsunderneath the cutouts will remain free from skin for a longer period oftime. be obvious that in the former case the pattern itself, with whichthe cut-out parts are meant, obtain a skin and will wrinkle later onunder the influence of water, whereas in the latter case the backgroundrather than the pattern itself will skin and wrinkle. However, in eithercase the conditions may be reversed by merely heating the film so longas to cause hardening of the earlier formed skin and initial developmentof the skin in the parts heated more slowly; then the water will affectmerely the soft skin which has just formed whereas the already hardenedskin will remain smooth upon the application of water.

The template may be held stationary, in which case the support has alsoto be kept in place in order exactly to reproduce the pattern of thetemplate and not to transform it into stripes or streaks. However, theentire process may also be carried out in a continuous manner by usingan endless belt and a traveling template in which case both have to bedriven with the same speed.

Faucet water is operative for the purpose of producing the wrinkles inthe process of my invention. However, it is preferred, and betterresults are obtained, if a wetting agent is added to the water. Allwetting agents known in the art are usable. I have obtained excellentresults, for instance, with the sodium sulfate of3,9-diethyltridecanol-6, and in particular with a concentration ofapproximately 3% thereof. The water may be applied either by spraying itthere'- on or by immersing the film, an immersion time of from 5 to 20minutes being sufficient in the latter case.

After the water has been applied, the film is peeled from the support.This may be carried out by means of a knife or blade. Peeling isconsiderably facilitated though, if the support with the film isimmersed into an aqueous solution of trisodium phosphate ofapproximately 10% con-' centration prior to peeling.

Thereafter the isolated film is dried; this step may be either performedby letting the film airdry or by the use of forced drying or by acombination of the two. It was found particularly advantageous first toheat the film for a short period of time in order to accelerateevaporation of the solvent and thereafter to allow the film to air-dry.Sometimes forced drying for only a fraction of a minute was foundsufiicient to initiate evaporation.

It will Instead of using a trisodium phosphate solution for the purposeof facilitating peeling, it was also found helpful to lubricate thesupport before the application of ink and resin solution. In this case,however, drying is preferably carried out prior to peeling. It will beunderstood that a great many additional materials may be added to theink or to the resin material. Thus, for example, plasticizers, e. g.tricresyl phosphate, dioctyl phthalate, dibutyl phthalate, may be addedto the resin. Metal powders may be applied either to the support orincorporated into the ink or into the resin solution. In case of thefilm material being transparent, such metal powders give an especiallypleasing effect. Likewise, the addition of autoluminescent materials wasfound to have a very favorable influence on the appearance of the finalfilm.

A pattern may also be developed by incorporating into the ink or theresin material a pigment or dye the color of which is developed underthe influence of specific light rays, for instance of infrared light orof ultra-violet light. In the case of materials sensitive toultra-violet light, a step has to be inserted prior to heating withinfrared light, namely, a step of exposure to ultra-violet light for thepurpose of developing the color of such materials. A pattern may beobtained in such a case, for instance, by uniformly coating the entiresurface of the support with a layer of ink and/or thermoplastic resineither or both of which may contain the ultra-violet sensitive material.A pattern may then be developed by selectively applying ultra-violetrays which may also be carried out by means of a template.

Although, in this case the application of a pattern by means of etching,ink, or the like is not necessary, both methods may still be combinedand additional effects be obtained thereby. Moreover, the pattern orappearance of such films may be modified by causing wrinkle formationover their entire surface or in predetermined areas thereof only. Allkinds of phosphorescent or luminescent materials known to those skilledin the art may also be added to the ink or resin substances in order toobtain additional light effects'in the product of my invention. It willthus be seen, that a great number of possibilities exist by whichvarious modifications may be obtained by the process of this invention.

The products obtained by the process of this invention may be used forornamental purposes or for displaying printed matter, for instance forsigns or other advertisement, or for a combination of both.

In the accompanying drawings two embodiments of an apparatus and processof my invention are illustrated by way of example without the intentionof limiting the invention thereto.

In these drawings:

Figure l is a diagrammatic illustration of a perspective view of anapparatus as it is used for one embodiment of my invention;

Figure 2 is a cross-sectional view thereof taken along line 2-2 ofFigure 1;

Figure 3 is a plan view of the film while on the support with partsbeing peeled away in order to show the support and the film in thevarious steps and stages of its manufacture;

Figure 4 is a sectional view of the apparatus of Figure 1 as viewed inthe direction of the arrows 4 of Figure 2;

Figure 5 is a diagram showing the electrical connections of the controlsystem of the appa ratus of Figure 1;

Figure 6 is a perspective view of a modification of the apparatus of myinvention;

Figure 7 is a longitudinal sectional view taken along line l'7 of Figure6;

Figure 8 is a cross-sectional view taken along line 83 of Figure 6; and

Figures 9 to 18 are cross-sectional views of various kinds of filmobtained by the process of this invention.

Referring to the drawings in detail, the reference numeral 25 designatesan endless support belt which travels over two rolls 2i and 22. Thisbelt has a relief pattern 23 which was produced by etching the remainingpartsof the surface of this belt. An inking roller 24 applies ink tosaid belt; in the instant case the ink is applied to the patterned(diamond shaped) parts only because of their being raised above thesurface of the background.

A reservoir 25 contains a resin solution which is dispensed therefromand applied to the surface of the support in the form of a layer 26. Astationary template 21 is arranged over said resin layer above whichinfrared lamps 28 are mounted. The reference numeral 29 indicates awater dispenser. It will be seen from the drawing that wrinklesgradually start to form after the application of the water. In theinstance shown, evaporation of the solvent, and water is carried out byair-drying. A blade 30 is installed at the end of the belt as a meansfor effecting removal of the film from the support. The finishedproduct, after drying, is finally wound on a reel or spool 3|.

The resin reservoir 25 is equipped with a solenoid 32 and the waterreservoir 29 with a solenoid 33 which effect closing of the reservoirswhile the belt is in a stationary position for the purpose of infraredheating.

The mechanism of the control system for discontinuing traveling of thebelt and supply of resin and water is illustrated in Figures 4 and 5.There, a cam 31 is mounted on a driving shaft 33 of a motor 35. Thedriving shaft 36 also carries an arm 38 with a roller 39 mountedthereon. A Geneva gear 40 with slots 4! is driven, and the belt 20therewith, whenever the roller 39 slides into the slots 4|. The cam 31operates a switch 42 which in turn controls a timer 43 for regulatingthe stopping time of the belt.

It will be seen from the electrical diagram (Fig. that a manual switch41, when closed, shuts a switch 46 whereby the motor 3-5 is started. Theswitch 42, which is opened and closed indirectly by the Geneva gear,operates a timer 43 which controls opening and closing of the switches44, 45 and 46; when the switches 44 and 45 are closed, the solenoids 32and 33 are energized and the reservoirs 25 and 29 closed. Thus, Whilethe switch 46 is in the open position and the motor 35 is stopped, theswitches 42, 44 and 45 are closed. The switch 44 in closed positionenergizes the solenoid 32 which in turn closes the bottom dispenser flap48 of the reservoir 2'5. Likewise, the switch 45 energizes solenoid 33and closes a dispenser valve on the water reservoir 29.

Figure 3 shows the support belt 20 with the various layers appliedthereon. Starting from the left, the raised pattern 23 is first visibleas it has been applied to the belt by etching the background. The nextstep shows an ink layer 34 on the raised diamond patterns 23.Thereafter, a layer 26 of resin solution is applied, which is exposed toinfrared heat while a template 2'! is interposed. The next step showsthe application of water and the last step the airdrying step and. thegradual development of the wrinkle finishes in the areas which developeda skin under the influence of infrared heat.

Figures 6 to 8 show a modification in which Q a template travelingsynchronously with the support belt provides for a continuous process.In these figures, an endless belt is designated with the referencenumeral 49; in this instance a smooth-surfaced belt without any patternis used. Similarly to the modification previously shown, this belt 49runs on rolls 50 and 5|. An inking roller 52 is arranged adjacent theroll it spreads a layer of ink 62 on the support belt. The resinsolution is dispensed from a reservoir 53 in the form of a layer 54. Atemplate 55 in the form of an endless belt runs over two rolls 56 and5'! with substantially the same speed as the support belt 49 so that theinfrared light emitted from lamps 58 duplicates the pattern of thetemplate. A water dispenser 59, a peeling blade 55 and a spool 61 forreceiving the finished product are arranged in this modificationanalogously to the corresponding elements shown in the previous figures.

Various types of products may be obtained with the process and theapparatus of this invention. Some examples are illustrated in Figures 9to 18 in which cross-sections of the films obtained are shown. Figure 9illustrates one type of a film while still mounted on the support belt.In this instance an etched belt 63 was used and ink 65 was supplied tothe raised areas 64 of said belt. A resin layer 66 was then appliedthereover and the surface wrinkled at the areas 61 which correspond tothe depressions of the pattern in the belt. This was carried out byusing a template of high heat conductivity in which parts were cut outthat corresponded to the pattern of the etched belt. It will beunderstood that the film after peeled from its support will have anembossed background with an inked pattern therein and a surface with awrinkled pattern, this wrinkled pattern supplementing the pattern of thebackround.

In Figure 10 the same kind of belt and the same arrangement of ink wereused, however, in this instance the entire surface 68 of the resin filmwaswrinkled.

Figure 11 corresponds to the film illustrated in Figure 9 with thedistinction that no ink was used in this instance.

The film of Figure 12 does not contain any ink either but, incontradistinction to Figure 11, the entire surface of the film iswrinkled in this instance.

Figure 13 shows an ink layer 69 applied on a smooth-surfaced belt 10 anda resin layer ii thereover with a wrinkle finish in selected areas 12only. In this instance the ink contained coloring matter which developedin the areas 13 under the influence of ultra-violet light.

Figure 14 illustrates a smooth belt with a de sign l5 printed thereonwith ink and a resin layer 16 thereover on which the areas I! of thesurface which correspond to the ink design 15 have been wrinkled.

Figure 15 is similar to Figure 14 with the distinction that here theentire surface 18 has been wrinkled.

Figure 16 is very similar to Figure 9; however, in this instance thewrinkle formation hasbeen obtained in the areas 19 of the surface whichcorrespond to the raised and inked pattern, whereas in Figure 9 thewrinkles were produced in the remaining parts of the surface.

Figure 17 shows a film 80 produced immediately on a smooth-surfaced belt8|, this film containing coloring matter which was developed byultra-violet rays through a template, thus causing only predeterminedareas 82 to obtain this color effect. Wrinkle formation was then causedin the surface in the areas 83 not corresponding to the coloredsections.

Figure 18 shows a film 86 which was produced on a smooth support 84provided with a pattern 85 and the surface of which was wrinkled at theareas 87 which correspond to the sections not having an ink pattern.

It will be understood that while there have been described hereincertain specific embodiments of the invention, it is not intendedthereby to have it limited to or circumscribed by the specific detailsgiven in view of the fact that this invention is susceptible to variousmodifications and changes which come within the spirit of thisdisclosure and the scope of the appended claims.

I claim:

1. A plastic film characterized by a patterned inked background andwrinkles on its surface only at areas of said surface other than thearea opposite said patterned background.

2. A plastic film characterized by a predetermined pattern in an inkedresin background and wrinkles on its surface only at areas of saidsurface other than the area opposite said patterned background.

3. A plastic film of vinyl acetate-vinyl chloride copolymercharacterized by a patterned inked background and wrinkles on itssurface only at areas of said surface other than the area opposite saidpatterned background.

4. A plastic film of vinyl acetate-vinyl chloride copolymer in the ratioof 5 parts by weight of vinyl acetate and parts by weight of vinylchloride, said film being characterized by a patterned inked backgroundand wrinkles on its surface only at areas of said surface other than thearea opposite said patterned background.

HARRY A. TOULMIN, J R.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file ofthis patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 2,275,957 Grofi Mar. 10, 19422,285,335 Hurt June 2, 1942 2,285,420 Doolittle June 9, 1942 2,339,775Ether Jan. 25, 1944 2,369,899 Hoffman Feb. 20, 1945 2,444,094 DugganJune 29, 1948 2,477,300 Karfiol July 26, 1949 2,482,094 Chevannes et al.Sept. 20, 1949 2,486,258 Chavannes Oct. 25, 1949

